The Dominion. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1910. BRITISH POLITICS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 737, 9 February 1910, Page 4

The Dominion. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1910. BRITISH POLITICS.

.■Although, as we have observed in earlier articles, the' cable messages relating to the political situation in Britain; are very unsatisfying, those, which; we ; do receive ;'are'.highly stimulating. ;The;legislators:of;Britain,: if they are .not 1 superior, to the. common love;of men for large and; .attentive audiences, . should .. feel pleased when they resume work, for" the ; .attention of .every : ■■ intelligent person in -the will; be. f ocussed upon .Westminster [ almost to the exclusion.. of everything else. The most interesting of to-day's messages ,is. that .which 'records ; the , interest ■■ taken in the\ conference ■■ between Me. . Asqbith and' Me. Lloyd: George, .who' was, seconded ,by that very able young Badical Me., Masteemah..; The .conclusion >'of'.the' Unionists thattho meeting; amounts to a Badical attack'.upon any moderate and peaceful thoughts, that the sunshine of : the' ; " Riviera i may 'be ripening in the Prime, Minister is reasonable: enough, but it is equally reasonable to,suppose,that-Me. AsQuith .has sent for his lieutenant to. explain .to the .'excellences, 'of discretion. /.'.Tho',one', certain fact that is_ implied 'by, either.; :of ; .these, reading's..of ' the ;Oannes; interviewone cannot help referring to it ex-, cept'in the large terms in which/one refers' to the meetings of /Kings and ■Emperors—is_ that.the., Government, is; still undecided as to. its'course, of action. In'the meantime, it is worth ,, while.paying-some.attention ; tp Me. Ohambeblain's.interpretation-, of the, elections from; the standpoint of i the high-priest, of>Tariff Reform.;. : He made his statement, which was sum-, marised in ourissue of yesterday, in an interviewjgranted; to ■' a ! Morning Post 'prior to his departure for Cannes. .-Although he' must-feel rather disappointed at the r failure of the Unionists to obtain a majority ; in -the .House,'he takes comfort .in. the. thought.. , that-; "there' has been, an.enormous increase in the votes cast" .for; his.-policy. ■ ,As''bn.e. of bur contributors-', showed, ,'yester-. day, there' .was certainly a substantial; majority;; of -votes'- cast:' for the' Unionists—in ;the 577 contested /seats, there' wero 2,932,567 Unionist and '.2,673,473'..-Liberal ivptes—but- the.'. Un :: ionist total,includes a vast;number, of votes by-Unionist Free-traders. . I ■■ Nothing;-if not 'a fighter, '.Me: Chahdeelain.'is- more!;apt than' most men to .fasten on :timidity' the.-re-sponsibility ,for any /defeat. ; The Tariff, Reformers, he',.. says, ''fared .worst-where-the local leaders;were most-vacillating and. timid. . The proposals for food duties," -he added, ■must ■ be explained boldly 'and straightforwardly." . Mi. -.Chamberlain is himself not quite free from blame ■ in the, matter... Nearly seven years'have elapsed since the Tariff Reform movement definitely began, but'it was not until the close of last session .that the leaders of the movement decided to cast away what , hid really been .'their''quite- useless reserve- aB to the true of taxes on foreign meat and grain. : This reserve—this unwillingness to admit that Tariff Reform, meant a duty, on food products—helped the Tariff Reformers not at all, and it hindered them in, that it constrained them to embarrassed silences in regions of debate-, in which free talk could have aided, and would . not have harmed', them. The first definite announcement of the actual policy decided upon by the Tariff. Reform leaders was, it will be remembered, contained ' in an -article ■ in the Birmingham Post, some few months ago. Although the Post argued the maid pointa;of the scheme, ite article was. just as exasperatingly obscure and inadequate as any unbiased seeker after truth must have found practically every one of the thousands of Tariff Reform statements that have ' appeared since 1903. We . were. told.by the Post, for example, of the, importance of'-, "giving the turn of the market to the home-producer when in corapetiti'ori with • a foreign rival," of "giving.; such encouragement to, home-producers that the evils of unemployment will be substantially mitigated," of the-wisdom of the .'policy that ."we should .import corn and.mill it at home'(thus employing our own labour) rather than import flour which has been prepared by other, labour." The last-quoted doctrine is exactly.like, and exactly as sound as, the doctrine that "we should grow tropical fruit at home (thus employing our own: labour) rather than import the ; oranges and bananas prepared by,other labour." We can see powerful : arguments against Tariff Reform, -from the jjpint of view -of impßiiai. jpolicy.

and of British economic policy, arid we can see on our own account some powerful arguments which, given certain ancillary- policies, stand in favour of Tariff Eeform.

The Tariff Eeform leaders are doubtless quite, sincere' in their assurance that, to quote the Birmingham Post, "there is no intention of ■ haying- multifarious rates which throw open the. door for Parliamentary intrigue or lobbying." The rigid percentage rates—s, per 'cent, on goods on which little laliour has been expended, 10 per cent, on goods more nearly approaching the 'finished state, and 15 per cent, on com-pletely-manufactured articles,- with a 2i percent, rebate to the colonies, par to , .the "friendly" nations, and a 2i per cent, premium to fiscally hostile countries—certainly promise an initial immunity from the villainous wire-pulling that, goes to .the framing of tariffs in such Protectionist countries ■'. as America. But once a beginning is made with even .a preferential revenue 'tariff, the passage to Protection is a short one. What political; art, what exertion, of pure statesmanship, can resist the tendencies.that the experience of America'has shown to be the natural outcome of; a tariff 'that-has other objects than the production of • revenue 1 Were the Tariff Beforaersvto confine their proposals' to. .duties on primary products .much, might be said. for. their- : case. ■'■.-'. A tariff on' corn, with free admission to the colonial product,' might bene-. fit'-British agriculture without imposing any new burden on the British consumer. The whole question is one of such supreme importance that every.: friend 'of Britain and the ■■; Empire must' desire.■:that it, should be discussed without reserve. Mb.. Chamberlain's counselof a bold and straightforward advocacy of food duties will, we trust, be taken to.,heart .by the Unionists, for so , far the , anxiety of the ./Unionist to : avoid admitting the true' meaning/of their.' policy has' done them! and the. interests, of the British 'nation avserious.injury." ■■ •